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Celtic's hopes of appeasing angry fans have been dashed after crunch talks ended in acrimony.
A leading supporters’ group claimed their meeting with the club hierarchy merely ‘compounded the necessity and urgency for change’ at Parkhead.
The Celtic Fans Collective group called off two planned silent protests in the past week after club chiefs agreed to meet with representatives to discuss concerns raised in an open letter sent to the board on September 3.
The group composed the letter in the wake of a disastrous transfer window, during which Brendan Rodgers’ side crashed out of the Champions League to Kairat Almaty.
Chief executive Michael Nicholson and finance officer Chris McKay attended the meeting at the stadium on Monday, but chairman Peter Lawwell was not present.
According to fans, the meeting resolved little, with the board’s representatives robustly defending the way they have been running the club.
Celtic fans make their feelings known about the board at last month's clash with Hibs
Supporters continued their protests with this display at Rugby Park in September
Now protests look set to continue at forthcoming matches after the international break, with supporters unhappy at how the club is being run.
Posted online, a summary of the meeting posted by the Celtic Fans Collective stated that ‘a recurring theme, through all answers and discussions, was a lack of humility, awareness and accountability’.
The statement added: ‘At various points, the club deferred to communication and perception being the causes of concern rather than structure, performance or culture.
‘The club also repeatedly questioned or rejected the premise of questions.
‘The club defended its footballing strategy although accepted it could be better communicated to fans.
‘Overall, the club believes the football strategy is working and pointed to participation in European competition as evidence of its success.
‘Similarly, the club defended its transfer strategy citing different factors for transfer activity being difficult (for example tax laws in different European countries) while pointing to examples which they believe is evidence of the strategy working.
‘When pressed on accountability for failings, the club rejected the premise of the question but referred to internal reviews and the experience of long- serving non-executive directors. The club provided little evidence of independent oversight and no belief that substantive change may be required.’
Peter Lawwell, Michael Nicholson and Chris McKay attended the recent Braga game, but only the latter two attended the meeting with supporters
Last month, following a newspaper report which claimed he was trying to manage his exit from the club, Rodgers said the source of the story had been guilty of a ‘cowardly act’.
The manager went on to say that he felt it was only right that the board investigated where the story had come from.
But the supporters group claimed that the board were not minded to taking the matter further after being specifically asked about it at the meeting.
‘The allegation of a senior club official briefing against the manager to The Sun was described as “closed” by Michael Nicholson,’ continued the statement.
‘The club was unwilling to divulge much information, although claimed a conversation took place between the board and the manager. The club suggested that the allegation was unsubstantiated and did not require further investigation.’
The statement concluded by expressing ‘disappointment that the club remained unwilling to engage meaningfully on questions of leadership, governance, and accountability’.
It added: ‘The meeting produced no tangible outcomes, and many participants left with the view that the club’s leadership remains detached from the concerns of its supporters and reluctant to confront the need for change.
‘The Celtic Fans Collective will continue to consult with members to plan next steps in our campaign for positive change at Celtic. It is our strong belief that yesterday’s meeting compounded the necessity and urgency of change.’
Celtic fans target the board with their protests during a League Cup match with Partick Thistle
Issued in response, a club statement claimed that an offer for ongoing dialogue was on the table.
It read: ‘We acknowledged that the club is not where we want it to be at the moment, that we have not achieved all of our objectives in the summer transfer window and the Champions League, and that mistakes have been made from which we will learn.
‘We recognise the concerns raised, share the frustrations of our supporters and valued the opportunity to hear from supporters last night.
‘Our immediate objective is to seek to make progress, without negatively impacting on the team on the field of play, and that we continue to focus on delivering success this season.
‘The club offered to continue to meet with supporters’ organisations moving forward and is committed to ongoing dialogue with our wider support.
‘We have always engaged in regular discussions with supporter groups and will continue to do so, with the aim of ensuring that we can work collaboratively and positively in the best interests of our team on the pitch and our club as a whole.’
